Persephone
by Lily of the Sun
Summary: When the Twins ask Hermione what her problem with them is they get a very surprising answer, shocking everyone. What exactly is Hermione hiding from everyone that is tearing her apart inside?


They were all gathered around the kitchen table in Grimmauld Place after dinner. Sirius and Harry were talking, the older Order members were quietly discussing business and the twins were re-enacting a particularly funny prank. A few seats along from them Hermione was reading a book, when she heard the twins she scoffed and rolled her eyes.

This drew the attention of everyone sitting close to her, causing the twins to share a look before they turned as one to face her.

"Look, Granger…"

"Just what exactly…"

"Have we done to you?" they asked, speaking in tandem.

She looked startled before a strange look came over her face and just as quickly disappeared.

"You haven't done anything to me," she spoke quietly before looking down and trying valiantly to seem as though she were absorbed in her book.

"Yeah, right Granger…"

"You've had a problem with us…"

"Ever since you've met us…"

"So, spill."

The same strange look came over her face but this time it didn't go away. She slammed her hands down on the table and shot to her feet, which immediately caused the whole room to go silent and look at her.

"I'm jealous of you! Is that what you wanted to hear?" she exclaimed. The twins got a twinkle in their eye, but before they could open their mouths she was speaking again.

"I'm jealous because you still have your twin and I don't. My twin is gone and she's never coming back. You joke and laugh as if nothing bad has ever happened to you and I have to watch you have what I most want in the world… my other half.

Every day I think of something I want to tell her and I turn around to speak and she's not there. Every day I live with the agony of knowing that the other half of my soul is dead and I'm never going to see her again.

I watch you do everything that we used to do like speak at the same time, finish each others sentences, pretend to be each other and play pranks. I have to have all the memories come flooding back and the pain is just as raw as it was when I was eleven years old. It never heals, it never goes away and every day I have to see what could have been.

She never even found out about magic, she never knew all the possibilities and this magical world that was waiting for us. I had to enter a whole new world without my twin, without the one person who knew everything about me because we were exactly the same.

I hate looking in the mirror because I look and I see her, staring back at me, except she's never going to talk to me again and I remember that it's just my reflection. But that's the problem, my reflection is gone, my mirror image is gone.

Sometimes I pause when I'm talking because I expect her to fill the gap because we always knew what the other was going to say. Then when all I hear is silence I have to go on knowing that she's never going to fill it ever again.

You don't have a clue what it's like, waking up and feeling the same emptiness every day. I look at you and the emptiness seems to double in size and the pain flares to life again. So, yes, I'm jealous of you."

She finished with tears in her eyes about to spill over, taking a breath she looked around as if suddenly realising she had an audience. The twins were stunned, just staring at her. As she gazed around she noticed everyone looking at her. Most had a look of pity and shock, as she turned her gaze to Harry and Ron she noticed that they were both gaping, their mouths hanging open in astonishment.

Quickly, she tipped over her chair and ran out of the kitchen, leaving stunned silence behind her.

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><p>A few minutes later Fred and George hesitantly opened her bedroom door and peered in. Seeing her lying face down on the bed, shoulders shaking with silent sobs, they went in closing the door quietly behind them. Laying down, one on either side they surrounded her. Her shoulders stopped shaking as she noticed the bed go down on both sides and two warm bodies settling next to her.<p>

They lay there in silence before Fred spoke up, breaking the silence.

"What was her name?"

He saw her head turn minutely towards him before she turned over completely and lay facing the ceiling. She was silent before she replied in a whisper.

"Persephone." Sensing that she would talk again when she was ready, no one spoke. Eventually Hermione offered something else.

"I didn't call her that though. I called her Saffy and she called me Mia," sniffing towards the end.

"My mum's name is Helen, she and Dad got together because of their shared love of Greek mythology, hence our names."

All was still again, until George spoke hesitantly.

"How… how did she…" unable to finish.

"Die?" ended Hermione.

"Yeah."

"We were just walking along the road one day, joking around and she dropped a ball and it rolled into the middle of the road. She looked around and made sure it was safe before walking out onto the road… But then a car came out of nowhere and it was going so fast. She… she didn't have any time to get out of the way, I remember screaming and then… then it hit her. She went flying, right up into the air. The driver didn't even stop, he just kept going. She was just lying there in the road… and there was so much… so much blood," she paused to swallow and compose herself.

"I ran to her and she was just lying there. She… she said 'I love you Mia' … and then she was dead and I wished I was dead too." This time she couldn't control herself and burst into tears again.

Fred and George put their arms around her and just held her, knowing that there wasn't anything they could do to make it better.

"You know Hermione, you could have told us."

"Yeah, you know there's always room for another Weasley Twin, you're already an honorary Weasley, although I suppose that would make us triplets."

"We wouldn't even have to tell you the rules, as a twin, you already know them all." She snorted before replying.

"I'm pretty sure when it comes to you two there are no rules."

"See George, the perfect bird for us, how did we ever miss her?"

They lapsed into silence for a few more minutes, Hermione safely ensconced in their arms, feeling warm and safe for the first time in a long time. Suddenly she spoke up again,

"You know, I think that is partly why I don't get along with my dorm mates."

"Huh?" came the responses from the darkness.

"Lavender is a vapid cow; I wouldn't ever get along with her. But I could have maybe gotten along with Parvati, except for the fact that half the time she acts like her twin doesn't exist. They even got sorted into different houses, I just don't understand how she seems to waste the… the gift of having a twin. I would give anything to get Saffy back," she sighed wistfully. Not knowing what to say to the last bit the Twins just remained quiet, only tightening their hold around Hermione.

* * *

><p>Later on Ginny and Mrs Weasley pushed open the door only to see the Twins and Hermione all tangled up together asleep. They fondly looked on before closing the door as quietly as they could and Ginny went to sleep in a free guest room for the night.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>AN This is just a one-shot for now. Please review or send me a message if you want me to continue, as I am quite tempted. I won't spoil it by continuing unless other people want me to do it. I can do another one-shot, a series of one-shots or turn it into a full length thing. Just let me know.**


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